DATE: Thursday, September 11, 1997          TAG: 9709110702

SECTION: LOCAL                   PAGE: B1   EDITION: NORTH CAROLINA 

SOURCE: BY CATHERINE KOZAK, STAFF WRITER 

DATELINE: KILL DEVIL HILLS                  LENGTH:  117 lines

WHITE WINS JOB AS DARE COMMISSIONER REALTOR GETS AN EASY MAJORITY OF THE VOTE BY DEMOCRATIC PARTY TO REPLACE OWENS.

Stan White, a Nags Head Realtor and Outer Banks native, won a seat Tuesday on the Dare County Board of Commissioners, filling the vacancy left when Chairman Bobby Owens resigned to accept a job on the state Utilities Commission.

In the 80 1/2-52 vote by the executive committee of the county Democratic Party, White defeated educator Sandy Brooks and retired teacher and military man David Oaksmith.

``I feel real good,'' White said Wednesday. ``Any time you win majority support, you know there's a percentage of folks that think you can do a good job.''

White, born and raised in Manns Harbor, has never held political office - although his father, William Stanford White, served for many years as chairman of the Dare County Board of Commissioners.

The new commissioner, who owns Stan White Realty and Construction Inc. in Nags Head, will attend his first board meeting Monday. A current and past member of numerous civic organizations, White was appointed last spring by the governor to the Licensing Board for General Contractors. He lives in Nags Head with his wife, Susie, and has one son, John, a pre-med student at UNC Chapel Hill.

``Stan White, with his ties to the state, and as a native of Dare County, will be a very strong asset to the commission,'' committee Chairman Chris Hardee said Tuesday. ``I would not be surprised to see him serving as chairman or vice chairman'' in the future.

White, 50, intends to seek re-election after his term expires in 1998, Hardee said.

Each of the party's 15 precincts was allotted a number of votes pegged to the number of ballots tallied in the most recent governor's race. The half-vote, Hardee explained, resulted from the absence of the Stumpy Point precinct chairman.

Other voting members included elected county officials andpresidents of affiliated Democratic organizations in the county.

In light of the potential for conflict with three candidates vying for the seat, Hardee said he was pleased with what amounted to a ``lively but responsible'' meeting.

``Honestly, I was prepared for the worst,'' he said. ``Whenever you have multiple nominees, it can get ugly.''

The hourlong meeting in Kill Devil Hills was a culmination of months of waiting for Owens' confirmation. Shortly after the governor announced the veteran politician's nomination to the powerful Utilities Commission last spring, Owens was prepared to depart county politics at a moment's notice. But the confirmation was put on the back burner for months while legislators bickered over the budget.

Despite Owens' exit from the board after a quarter-century tenure, Brooks is not convinced that things will be much different now.

Brooks, 43, principal at Manteo Elementary School, said the result of the executive committee's vote was ``not unexpected.''

``I have a good sense of politics,'' she said. ``I know how the political machine works. I think the vote, in and of itself, tells you what direction the party executive committee wants county politics to go.

``They want more of the same.''

But Brooks, a lifelong Democrat, said she believes that county residents wanted a change, and will prove it in the next election by voting Republican.

``I think the direction they took last night has kind of sealed the fate of the Democratic Party in Dare County,'' she said.

Saying she will not rule out running for a political office in the future, Brooks said she still plans to stay active in the Democratic party.

``I wish Stan the best,'' she said. ``Hopefully, he will go in there and tackle problems regardless of who brings them up.''

Oaksmith, 65, said he was disappointed there was no opportunity to debate the issues with the other candidates, or answer questions.

``I felt like it was locked in already when we got there,'' he said. ``"I don't mean to point the finger on anybody on that - but that's the way it was.''

Oaksmith, who says he probably will seek seek office again, said it would be better for the county if White can break apart the partisan voting blocs that have evolved at commission meetings.

``I really hope that Stan will end that and look at some of the issues for what they are,'' he said.

Commissioner Shirley Hassell, a Democrat who recently switched to the GOP, said she has no opinion one way or another about White's victory, since she does not know him.

``I just hope we'll all be able to work together,'' she said.

But she added she is disturbed about the perception that all members of the board vote only along party lines.

``I vote my conscience,'' she said. ``I vote with the way I feel it will benefit the people - it has nothing to do with parties.''

Hassell said she believes it would be helpful if agenda items were determined earlier so the whole board would have a chance to be well-informed about the challenges facing the county.

``Maybe if there was more communication between board members themselves, I would feel more comfortable,'' she said.

White, however, said he fully intends to confront the board's current divisiveness.

``I am not naive enough to think I can go in and make any big changes,'' he said. ``But I want to get both parties talking again. Somebody's just got to extend a hand and say, `Let's do this together.' ''"

As a native son from a family entrenched in Dare County politics, White dismissed any implications that he slipped nicely into the still-warm seat of Owens - frequently referred to by his opponents as a ``good ol' boy.''

Because he knows many people in many occupations throughout the county, he said such connections will help him establish communication.

``As far as being one of the `good ol' boys' - I hope I am. But I hope it won't be perceived as anything negative.''

White said his goal is not just to foster unity between the parties, but also to unite his own party, which was stung by a loss of two seats to Republicans on the Board of Commissioners in the most recent election.

``I think the Democratic Party is an extremely strong party (but) in this particular community it has become somewhat lackadaisical in their approach to politics,'' he said. ``Again, I'm a little naive to the process, but I would hope that I can unite the Democratic party.''

But White said it's time for the county to look beyond local politics. For instance, he said, the county must take a regional approach to water and transportation issues.

``We're just fortunate that we have a real big asset and jewel in Dare County,'' he said. ``And we're going to have to start sharing it.'' KEYWORDS: DARE COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS

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